Abstract Restoring reliable grasping of diverse objects is a priority for individuals with severe hand impairments. We report the translational development of a lightweight, textile-based soft robotic exoskeleton glove with wrist dorsiflexion and an active opposable and abductable thumb, designed to restore hand function in a patient with severe right-hand impairment due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). We followed a co-creation approach, enhancing dexterity by increasing hand articulations based on patient needs. Furthermore, to enhance the patients' sense of control, a non-invasive sEMG-based grasp predictor (97% sensitivity) was combined with motion data and ML-based error-correction to compensate for weak, noisy muscle signals, compared to healthy controls (n=15). The exoskeleton assistance enabled the patient to intentionally grasp everyday objects, achieve a Box-and-Blocks Test score of 5, and regain the ability to feed himself. To evaluate broader applicability, we validated the exoskeleton with stroke patients (n=6). While exoskeleton assistance on average reduced ARAT scores of moderately impaired patients by 9, severely impaired patients scored 17 points higher when using the exoskeleton.
Cheng et al. (Fri,) studied this question.